Attorneys who want to build professional credibility within their network and expand their marketing should start publishing content on LinkedIn.
We all know that “content is king” in today’s marketing. For lawyers, this is especially true because creating content can quickly boost their professional credibility and help them build relationships with referral sources and potential clients.
There is an easy-to-use platform available to attorneys where they can publish content and share it directly within their target market– the LinkedIn publishing tool.
Originally created for influencers, LinkedIn’s publishing platform opened up to all users in 2014. It allows professionals to easily share commentary on recent industry developments directly within their network. It’s the ultimate way to differentiate your firm as more knowledgeable and credible than your competitors.
Here are 7 reasons why you should be publishing content on LinkedIn:
1. It’s a great complement to your existing blog
If you’re already writing a blog for your law firm, then you probably understand how publishing content benefits your marketing. What is great about adding LinkedIn to your marketing toolkit is that you don’t have to worry about writing additional original pieces. You can start publishing content on LinkedIn by re-purposing old articles.
This doesn’t mean you should completely re-post duplicate content on LinkedIn; it is better to take the content and ideas you’ve had that performed the best and turn them into a new post. There is nothing wrong with taking parts of related content, making minor edits and turning it into something valuable for your LinkedIn network. This process isn’t time consuming and should only take about 20 minutes, which means you can easily add it to the time you already have carved out for marketing your firm.
Remember to add a line at the bottom that redirects the reader back to your website. It can read something like “This post was originally published on the [insert law firm name] blog” and link to the original post. This is a great way to redirect qualified traffic back to your website.
2. It’s an easy way to get started in content marketing
Some lawyers are skeptical about how effective blogging can be for their firm and are reluctant to start blogging directly on their website right away. In this case, they can use the LinkedIn publishing platform as a content marketing trial run.
For lawyers who don’t currently have a blog on their website or if it’ll take some time to get their blog up and running, publishing content on LinkedIn is a fast, easy way to jump start their content marketing in the meantime.
Everything you need to start blogging today is set up for you on the LinkedIn publishing platform. You can write a post, include visuals and have it go live with built-in share buttons and a comments section without waiting for your website developer to launch the blog section of your website.
Although it is a good idea to use LinkedIn publishing to test the waters of content marketing, keep in mind that it’s still recommended you eventually publish your content on your own website so you’ll always know where your posts are archived and indexed for search engines.
When you publish content on a social networking site you are only “renting” space on that platform. Make sure you’re maintaining ownership of your content with your own website. You don’t want to risk losing years of work in the event something happens to the LinkedIn site or there are changes made to the platform.
3. It’s targeted to the right audience
The professionals you want to reach have a LinkedIn profile and they are looking for valuable content related to their industry. According to LinkedIn’s Pulse overview, more than 150,000 LinkedIn users follow “Law Practice” content.
The LinkedIn publishing platform is set up so that users can easily find articles related to their professional interests. Any content you publish on LinkedIn will reach the right professional network with referral or revenue potential.
When you post links to your content on other social media platforms you have very little control over who your followers and visitors actually are; therefore, you can’t be certain if the people reading your blog are potential clients or referral sources.
On LinkedIn, your content is guaranteed to be seen by fellow attorneys or professionals working in positions related to your practice area. All articles are sorted out by topic and theme so you know your readers are looking for what you’ve written.
4. Less effort to promote your posts
Once you publish a post on LinkedIn, it shows up on your profile and a notification is sent out to your network. Also, LinkedIn users who aren’t connections can follow you on Pulse so they will receive updates when you publish.
Additionally, LinkedIn actively promotes content to your followers through “Pulse Update” emails that include a “published by your network” section. This way users who may have missed your post when it was first published will get an additional notification in their email.
Be aware that you shouldn’t publish as frequently on LinkedIn as you would on your law firm blog. Since notifications show up each time you publish, you don’t want to overwhelm your network with too many updates regarding new posts. Focus on only posting your best content on LinkedIn a few times per month.
5. It can help you expand your network
It’s important to use LinkedIn groups to connect with potential clients and referral sources; however, the LinkedIn publishing platform is also an effective way to get noticed by people outside of your network.
Since LinkedIn curates content for users based on their interests, then it is likely your content will be seen by other attorneys or professionals within your practice area. As you post more content and provide more value, you will see an increase in followers and connection requests.
Essentially, sharing information is the best way to get noticed. Your target audience will find you and they will want to be added to your network if you’re consistently sharing thoughtful, well-written material.
6. It has major SEO value
Your posts will be searchable both on LinkedIn and on search engines. LinkedIn itself already ranks high in Google searches, making it easier for your profile and your content to show up in search results. Because of LinkedIn’s high site authority, for most attorneys their articles will rank higher on Google search when published on LinkedIn as compared to the author’s own blog.
Also, publishing on multiple platforms will amplify your content’s reach. This could bring more visitors to your website or result in back links to your content.
7. It has built-in analytics
No need to worry about not being able to measure the performance of your content with your content relationship management software because LinkedIn will show you the data metrics of your posts. If you haven’t invested in a CRM, then it will be helpful for you to use LinkedIn’s free analytics tools to see what content is resonating with your target audience.
Publishing on LinkedIn can help solidify your reputation as an authority in your practice area. Once you’ve set up your LinkedIn profile and you’re comfortable using the platform, it’s time to start posting.
It’s your opportunity to develop your credibility within your network, expand the reach of your content and drive more traffic to your website.
Whether you’re just getting started with content marketing or you already have a built-out marketing plan, you should take advantage of the benefits that come with publishing content on LinkedIn.
